


Our Santa Monica Dream

by DellaWatsonHolmes



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/F, LA, YouTube, Youtube AU, amberprice, youtuber!rachel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-06 04:43:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,788
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14634375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DellaWatsonHolmes/pseuds/DellaWatsonHolmes
Summary: Her blue haired angel, though insistent on staying behind the camera at all times, had been incredibly supportive of her decision to start this Youtube channel. They had agreed that while modelling was fun, this was a better way of getting started after their escape from the hell of Arcadia Bay.





	1. Living Large in LA

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time actually publishing a fic I've written, and definitely my first time writing for Life is Strange fandom.  
> Comments & constructive criticism welcome!!

                                                                       

“Hello youtube! My name is Rachel, and this is my first vlog!” Rachel Amber raised a hand and offered a wave to the camera, her lips forming a cheery grin. “I figured I’d start this video by introducing myself and taking you around with me for the day so you can really get to know me!”  
Rachel paused, looking behind the camera at her girlfriend Chloe. God, was she grateful she wasn’t doing this alone. Her blue haired angel, though insistent on staying behind the camera at all times, had been incredibly supportive of her decision to start this Youtube channel. They had agreed that while modelling was fun, this was a better way of getting started after their escape from the hell of Arcadia Bay.

  
“Do you think I should talk about what I want to do with this channel first… or should I do that at the end?” Normally Rachel would consider herself a fairly confident person, but she was new to the youtube scene, she was new to LA. Everything around her was changing and it was shaking her confidence. If there was one thing that she was grateful wouldn’t be changing, it was Chloe’s presence. From behind the camera Chloe reached a hand forward to grab hold of Rachel’s.

“You’re doing great, babe. Don’t overthink it. We did it, okay? We’re here. We escaped. All that’s left is for you to make us a shitload of money. No pressure.”

“Oh shut up.” Rachel said, releasing Chloe’s hand and pushing her teasingly. Somehow, this relaxed her, and she was almost immediately able to feel the tension releasing from her shoulders. What would she do without Chloe? She always knew when to say exactly the wrong thing in exactly the right situation to loosen Rachel’s nerves when she was getting overwhelmed. Feeling calmer, Rachel continued.

“I’m 18 years old, and I just moved here to sunny LA! There’s not much I can tell you about where I’m staying, because in truth I’m still settling in. Travelling around. We haven’t managed to find a place to call home yet, but for now I’m happy to call the open road and the sunny beaches my home.” The blonde took a step away from the camera at this point, allowing the wind to whip her hair out from behind her ears as she gestured towards the sandy beach and the warm ocean. The view was interrupted only by the sight of the rusting brown-ish truck they had used to make their break-away. The truck was worn down, barely running after their drive from Arcadia just shortly after Christmas.

Regardless, it was their home until could to scrape together enough money for a first and last months rent cheque on an apartment in the city. The girls had managed to pull together enough cash from Christmas (mostly from Rachel’s family) in order to make the drive out here with enough leftover for food and gas for a month in LA if they were lucky. But the girls were hopeful. They knew if they worked hard enough they could find a way to survive out here together. Even if it meant saving up for a fishing rod and living off the land, they were willing to do it if it meant they could stay together.

“It’s new years day right now, the beginning of 2012, and hopefully the beginning of a lot of new things.” The girls locked eyes at these words, silently sharing in a moment of relief. New beginnings and long awaited escapes, that was what they were here for. That’s what they were ready for. “Namely, the beginning of a new relationship with anyone out there watching this. I hope we can get to know each other as I build this channel, and I hope that you can enjoy and relate to my content. I plan on creating a lot of different things for you guys. From vlogs, and conversations like this, to makeup tutorials and lookbooks, to lifestyle and advice videos. I hope that I can inspire you and interest you, and most of all I hope that I can befriend each and every one of you that watches this video.”

“And I hope you can watch her video thousands of times so we can build up a shitload of that sweet, sweet ad revenue.” Chloe cut in, grinning. “Please don’t include my voice in the video.” She added, her cheeks reddening slightly.

“Don’t worry, babe, I won’t.” Rachel reassured her gently “If I include swearing we might miss out of that sweet, sweet ad revenue.” Both girls giggled as Chloe punched Rachel’s arm teasingly, Chloe being sure to turn off the camera before pulling Rachel into a tight hug, placing a passionate kiss on the shorter girl’s lips before pulling away.

“What now?” Asked Chloe, placing the lense back on the expensive camera Rachel’s father had gifted her for Christmas in an ever-constant attempt to win back her affections after all of his nasty lies from years before when Rachel and Chloe’s relationship had just been blooming into something real, passionate, and beautiful.

“I guess… we vlog our day. Or you vlog mine, since you still insist on keeping that beautiful face off camera.”

“Hey, I just don’t need the whole universe to have access to my badassery. One badass on camera is enough. If we’re both there the whole internet might just… explode or whatever.”

“Hey, I’m not complaining. It just means I get to keep that beautiful face all to myself. The more for me, the better.” Rachel said with a wink, causing Chloe’s cheeks to flood with colour. “Now come on Junkyard Queen, let’s go stock up on food and maybe try printing those resumes.”


	2. The Perfect Smokey Eye (On the Go)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I won't normally be releasing chapters this frequently because I'm currently in summer school, but I had some inspiration so I'll pretty much be posting as inspiration comes! Enjoy!

                                                            

      “I think they liked you.” Rachel said, nudging Chloe as they exited Hot Topic, each grasping a handful of resumes.

      “I can’t believe Arcadia Bay doesn’t have one of these stores. I had to build this style all on my own!” Chloe replied, stuffing her resumes messily into her bag then gesturing to her skull tank, black and white plaid shirt and ripped jeans.

      “What style? Gay punk?”

      “Oh, coming from you Miss Bisexual Prep,” Chloe teased, returning the playful nudge.

      “This?” Rachel said, gesturing to her own blue plaid, red tee and black skinny jeans “This is fashionable, timeless –“

      “Gay.”

“Okay and maybe a little gay, not that I’m complaining.” She winked before leaning in to press a kiss to her girlfriends lips, ignoring the stares from fellow mall-goers as she grabbed Chloe’s hand and began walking down the mall hallway. “So, my beautiful gay punk, where to next? Maybe I should drop my resume off at a Sephora?”

                Chloe frowned, and using her free hand grabbed Rachel’s resumes from her. “I still don’t know why you insist on dropping these off. I thought you were doing this youtube thing for the sweet cash and I’d be the home-maker, the macho, pants-wearing-“

                “-Gross,” Rachel giggled, smacking Chloe’s arm “You sound like David.”

                “Kidding, god,” Chloe laughed “But for reals, you don’t have to get a job. You need time to make videos and shit, I don’t want you distracted with two jobs.”

                “But Chloe, I’m not making any money off of this yet… and the chances of my channel actually getting popular are-“

                “-Super likely? Who doesn’t want to listen to some hot babe talk about makeup and lifestyle and shit? How else do you think youtubers get popular?”

                “I mean I _am_ a super hot babe, of course, but what if people don’t even find my videos? At least… until this thing takes off I want to have money coming in from _somewhere_. At least one of us needs a job, Chlo.”

                Chloe suddenly pulled her hand away from Rachel’s, stopping walking in her tracks. “What do you mean _one of us_ needs a job. Isn’t that was these are for?” She asked, pulling out her own, slightly crumpled resumes.

                “Well, yeah, but-“

                “But what, Rach? We talked about this… I could hold down a job while you make a name for yourself online. All of this – the drive, the getaway, the camera, it was all so you could follow your dream out here in LA. Not so you could get stuck in some dead-end low-paying job without any time to do what you’re passionate about.”

                “Chlo…”

                “Besides, it’s not like I can’t get hired anywhere,” Chloe paused, lowering her voice, adamantly ignoring the staring pedestrians who had slowed down to listen to their squabble “Look, I know I’m not the most… professional person, but for you… for _us_ , I know I can drop the attitude and get an actual job. It’s not like I can’t turn it off. It’s just around people who deserve it…. Like your dad, like David. But I promise, I want to do what’s right… I want to get a job here so _you_ can live your dream.”

Rachel paused, drinking in the silence.

                “But what about your dreams, Chlo?” She finally spoke, her voice soft; far from the usual confident, vindictive, smashy anger that usually overtook her during their fights.

                “My dream is being here… with you. Away from my step-douche, away from Blackwell, away from the memory of my dad and Max and… all of the _rejection_. I’m sick of it all, Rach. It’s why I wanted to run. I want to start fresh, in a place where no one knows me. In a place where I’m not the punk fuck-up and Blackwell dropout. I want to just… be somewhere new for once. I want to prove I can be someone different, find my passion again. Maybe that’ll be selling badass punk clothes at Hot Topic, or handing tools to some badass chick while she fixes cars, hell, maybe I’ll even try school again. But right now, Rach, I just want to be here with you, I want you to live your dream. So please, trust me. Let me get this job, let me work so you can do what you love. And then, when you get super fucking rich, you can pay for me to do whatever the fuck I want, even if that’s just walking around filming your hot ass every day.” Chloe grabbed Rachel’s hand again, squeezing it tightly. Her girlfriend offered her a gentle smile in return before taking the resume’s from Chloe’s hand.

                “Rach – “ she began, but stopped when Rachel released her hand and tore the resume’s in two.

                “You win, drama queen. Now let’s go find a nice mechanic shop for you to drop some of your resumes off at. No having sex with hot girl mechanics though,” she paused, smiling, “Unless I can join in of course.” Winking, Rachel grabbed Chloe’s hand and the two continued walking.

***

                “Okay, so how do I know for sure I’m not in this shot?” Chloe asked, nervously eyeing the camera precariously placed leaning against the truck’s front window.

                “Don’t worry, Chlo! Even if you are in it I can cut you out in editing.”

                “Fine. So you just want me to… Drive?”

                “Exactly! We’ll head to the beach so we can settle down for tonight in the truck, that way we won’t waste more gas than necessary, and meanwhile I’ll film this video so we can get that hella cash.”

                Shrugging, Chloe waited until Rachel had her makeup bag set up before slamming the gas.

                “Hello again Youtube! My name is Rachel and I’m back today with another video! I’m going to show you how to get the _perfect_ smokey-eye makeup look on the road! As you can see from my last vlog-“

                “But we haven’t even finished the vlog yet. We didn’t do a whole lot of filming when we were out earlier and – “

                “Well sure, but I’ll post this video _after_ that one! Now do you want your voice in the video or not, babe?”

                “Hell no. Sorry, continue.”

                “As you can see from my last vlog, we’ve been on the move a lot. Considering that we haven’t really settled into LA yet, I’ve found myself having to do my makeup on the road a lot. So today I’m going to show you exactly how I get that perfect look –“

As if on cue, the girls drove over a pothole and the camera fell off of the car’s dashboard and into Rachel’s lap. Laughing, she picked the camera back up, placed in on the dashboard and charmingly smiled at the camera

                “-Even on the bumpiest of rides!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please feel free to leave a comment, let me know what you think, good or bad! Thanks for reading, and I'll try to post again soon!


	3. A Day in My Life: New to LA

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Credit for the picture of Rachel in the Youtube thumbnail goes to http://kunaike.tumblr.com/ the artist for the "Love is Strange" game!  
> Also, little hint: Start paying attention to the Youtube screenshots and to the recommended videos, they might become important later ;)  
> If you need a closeup photo my tumblr is itsamberpricefield.tumblr.com and I'll be posting them soon!

                                                              

                Rachel woke to the feeling of a cool morning breeze on her feet, her face curled into Chloe’s chest for warmth, her arms draped over the taller girl’s body. She took a moment, feeling the breeze on her skin, Chloe’s warmth seeping into her bones, and the weight of the sleeping bag over her shoulders, ignoring the world that awaited her. Slowly, hesitantly, the blonde opened her eyes to the bright sun beating down on her exposed legs, the sound of the ocean not far from her.

                The girls had chosen the previous night to leave the cover off of the back of the truck. Before leaving Arcadia Bay Chloe had insisted on purchasing a full cover that would allow them to comfortably and safely sleep at night. Rachel had voted against it, wanting to wake in the mornings like this with the breeze gently blowing and the sounds of the beach outside to remind her that they’d done it, they’d escaped.

                In the end, Chloe’s surprising voice of reason had won over, and they’d purchased it as a precaution for particularly rainy nights, or on nights when they would be forced to sleep in more public areas than the many empty stretches of beaches they’d managed to retreat to up until this point.

                Rachel gently pulled her arms from on top of Chloe’s body and sat up, stretching her limbs. She tried to be careful and quiet, but really it made little difference, as Chloe, once asleep, was truly akin to a rock. Carefully, the blonde pulled out her phone, eyeing the texts she had been receiving for days now, since she had run away. On the top of the list of texts today was a number of messages from Steph Gringich, a friend of both girls from Blackwell and one of the very few good things left from that town. Rachel had been avoiding her texts for days now, knowing realistically It was best to build up her life here with Chloe before speaking with anyone. Todays text read:

                    **Rachel! Saw your first youtube video! So glad youre safe!!!**

**Is Chloe with you???**

                     **you should have told me that’s where you were going, I totally support you! your channel is great so far!!**

           A pang of guilt hit Rachel. Of course, to avoid calls to the police she and Chloe had left notes for their parents explaining that they were leaving (not where they were going), but to avoid conflict they hadn’t bothered telling any of their friends. It was unlikely that their parents would tell anyone the situation, especially Rachel’s parents, who were likely in denial about the whole situation. As for Joyce, she’d likely be quietly handling it, avoiding talking with anyone around the diner until she knew for sure what was happening.

         Rachel could see that Chloe felt guilty about leaving her mom. Though their relationship was still rough, they had grown closer since the girls’ decision to officially move. Rachel suspected that upon realising that they were _actually_ going through with this, Chloe had begun to realize how much she’d miss Joyce. Rachel would, too. Unfortunately, Chloe’s relationship with David had only worsened. He’d become more hostile and suspicious as time went on, and in the end, it was likely this continued aggression from David that pushed Chloe to actually leave when they did. Rachel had caught Chloe checking her phone still, reading the texts that were likely from her mom, begging her to come back. Rachel had peeked over Chloe’s shoulder once and spotted a text from her mom reading

                **Chloe, is it David?**

**I know he’s been a lot worse lately… I miss you.**

**I’m not saying I’m leaving him… but I am going to have a conversation with him about his behaviour… I think it’s time for some change…**

              This, of course, was a huge change from what had happened the first time Chloe had run away to stay in the junkyard that first week they’d met. Rachel was surprised that Joyce was standing her ground like that. Of course, any time Rachel tried asking, Chloe denied even reading the texts from her mom. She was guarded, but a horrible liar. Rachel trusted that Chloe wasn’t texting back, just as they had agreed, but that didn’t stop Chloe from pining for that relationship with her mom to be rebuilt.

              Letting out a sigh, Rachel closed her phone and walked to the front seat of the car to grab the camera. It was vlog day, and she was thoroughly unprepared to let her (currently very small) audience know that she was currently living out of a truck, driving between different empty LA beaches every night to find a safe place to sleep, unpopulated but still in the range of a nearby bathroom if needed. It wasn’t the ideal living situation, but until Chloe got a job, it was really all they had. With a deep breath, Rachel held the camera up, pointing the view finder towards herself so she could get an idea of what she looked like (messy hair, smudged makeup, not ideal but would have to do) before hitting the record button.

             “Hello again Youtube!” Rachel said cheerily, her voice still slightly groggy from disuse and quiet enough that she wouldn’t wake Chloe the Rock. “Welcome to my everyday! Today I’ll be letting you follow me through a day in my new life in LA! First thing in the morning I like to do my everyday Yoga routine by the ocean, then do my everyday makeup look!”

***

          About an hour later, Chloe and Rachel were sat in the coziest chairs in the corner of Starbucks, both relieved from having finally used the bathroom near the beach they were staying at and having brushed their teeth (Rachel for a full two minutes, Chloe for approximately twenty seconds) and gotten a nice, warm breakfast.

         “Not nearly as good as your moms cooking, but Starbucks definitely has better breakfasts than McDonalds.” Rachel said, biting down on her own spinach and egg breakfast sandwich.

        “I think we have to break up,” Chloe said sarcastically, frowning at her own blueberry and sunflower seed muffin “What kind of place doesn’t have chocolate chip muffins? This is bullshit.” She said, miming barfing before finally digging unhappily into her own breakfast.

       Rachel laughed heartily as she pulled out her Macbook, opening it up and connecting to the Starbucks wifi to post her makeup on the go video.

      “Thank god for free wifi.” She said, sighing. The wifi in these places wasn’t ideal, but it got the job done. It wasn’t like they could connect wifi to the truck.

       “Alright babe, you ready to be filmed again?” Chloe asked, pulling the camera out so they could continue their video.

       “One second,” Rachel replied, puling out her pocket mirror and quickly fixing her hair “Okay, now I’m ready!” She waits until Chloe gives her the thumbs up before giving a smile to the camera “So I’m currently eating breakfast at Starbucks and taking advantage of the lovely free wifi. If you didn’t notice from this morning, I am currently living in a truck, so wifi isn’t exactly a commodity we can afford. It’s only temporary, though! As soon as we are making money we’ll be in an apartment with our own lovely wifi! Most mornings I love to come somewhere with free wifi so I can upload my videos for you guys and get a lovely breakfast!”

***

       The girls filmed their day, moving from Starbucks to a day at the beach, to eating lunch in the back of the truck. Chloe lovingly relaxed Rachel’s nerves, and Rachel exuded confidence, which in turn calmed Chloe’s nerves. In truth, Rachel couldn’t imagine being in LA any other way. As confident and ambitious as she was, she couldn’t imagine doing it without Chloe by her side. Of course, not everything was easy. As the girls pulled into a restaurant for dinner, Chloe looked uneasy.

      “I think we’re low on gas again, babe.”

      Rachel shrugged in reply.

      “How much money have we got left? I’ll have to refill it before we make it out to the rest stop we planned on sleeping in tonight. God, I really need a job.” She ran her hair uneasily through her blue hair which was just beginning to peek dark blonde again at the roots. Rachel reached out a hand and touched Chloe’s shoulder.

      “You’ll find something soon, Chlo. Besides, if it gets too hard I can always start applying, too. It’s more likely one of us will find something if we’re both looking, right?”

      Chloe nodded slowly, opening the truck door to begin walking towards the restaurant. If there was one thing Rachel hated about their move, it was how serious it was making Chloe. Carefree, school-ditching, tattoo-getting, rebel Chloe was worrying about money and work and professionalism. Of course, professionalism looked hot on Chloe (as most things did), but seeing her rebellious girlfriend so worried was really shaking Rachel’s game. Regardless, she could do little about it at the moment, so the blonde shook off her own uneasy feelings and followed her girlfriend into the restaurant to eat.

***

      “I got an egg-white omelette with spinach for dinner. Super yummy, and luckily the cheapest item on the menu! Money’s a little tight right now, but we’re getting by-“

      Just then Chloe’s phone rang. Both girls stopped, looking at it, worried it would be another call from Joyce or David or even Steph trying to gauge their whereabouts. When Chloe glanced at her phone, however, none of these people were on the other end. An unknown LA number flashed on her screen, and Rachel’s face spread into a huge smile.

      “Answer it!” She urged, nudging her girlfriend excitedly.

      “Hello?” Chloe said, putting on her best professional voice. Hot. “Yes, this is Chloe Price. Yes, I applied there.” Rachel’s smile grew impossibly wider.

      “Who is it? The mechanic shop? The grocery store?” Chloe nudged Rachel as if to say ‘shut the hell up’.

      “I’d love to come in for an Interview!” Chloe said “When? Um, whenever… Um, I mean afternoons work best for me. Yes that time works. Yes, I look forward to speaking with you, too. Thank you Jess.” Chloe hung up her phone, staring at it for a moment as if an alien had just poked it’s head through the speaker.

      “So?” Rachel asked eagerly “Who was it?”

      “Hot Topic.” Chloe replied, her face still flat and expressionless “Hot fucking Topic wants me to interview tomorrow at two o’ clock. They loved my hair, they said I seemed great for the job…” It was then that Chloe’s face broke into a huge smile and she grabbed Rachel, pulling her into a huge hug before pulling herself together again and pulling up the camera that she realized was still recording.

      “I guess… Money might not be too tight for long, though!” Rachel said to the camera, beyond relieved to see the Chloe she fell in love with back out in the open.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! As always, if you have any comments or constructive criticism please feel free to leave them below! Any feedback is appreciated!  
> And thank you to my best friend Billie (nicework-boyo.tumblr.com) for editing this chapter for me!


	4. Where Do I Live? Q&Amber

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! Life has been... blah

                                                                        

“Jesus Rach your channel is blowing up!” Chloe and Rachel sat curled together in a booth at Mcdonalds, feeling comforted by the fake fireplace nearby. They liked coming here at night when it was practically empty save for the drunk twenty-somethings coming in for some food after a night of partying.

The girls liked to pretend that this was their home, curled up by the fireplace scrolling through youtube comments and planning for Chloe’s interview as they had the previous night. It was childish, but it felt safe, hopeful. Like they were actually going someone, like one day they’d _actually_ be able to do this in a Los Angeles apartment and not the back of a Mcdonalds. It was short-lived, and they both knew they’d be returning to the truck on a new beach by the evening, but these moments, uninterrupted by work or money worries, were all they had.

“I’d hardly call 200 subscribers blowing up.” Rachel retorted with a grin, pulling her laptop from between the two of them to more directly in front of herself.

It was true, unexpectedly, overnight Rachel had gone from twenty-something subscribers to two hundred and fourteen, and she still wasn’t sure why.

“I don’t know, I smell money in our near future, babe.”

“Oh shut up!” Rachel giggling, nudging the blue-haired girl before focusing her attention back on the computer, her smile quickly falling, her heart fluttering.

“Do you think it’s because we live in the truck?” She asked, slamming the computer shut, hating how quiet her voice was. “Do you think I’m going to be one of those cringe-sensations?” She hated feeling so small.

“Rach,” Chloe said, her own voice softening as she reached for Rachel’s hand. “I’m sure it’s nothing like that. You living in a truck isn’t weird enough for people to latch onto. If anything, they’re surprised how together your life is despite our…current situation.”

Rachel offered her girlfriend a soft smile, squeezing her hand in response.

“Besides, now that I’m officially a ‘Sales Associate’ at Hot Topic, we’ll be out of that truck in no time and living large in some kickass loft-apartment or whatever they’re called. The ones with the big windows and the huge balconies that you always liked.”

The blond couldn’t help but smile at that, loving how much her girlfriend tried to learn about housing details because she knew Rachel loved it. It was true, she was always a huge fan of the beautifully lit, open-concept lofts advertised in this beautiful city. Of course, she knew that any starter apartment would likely be in the basement of some creepy old man’s even older house, but it was fun to dream. Besides, she was honestly happy to live in a creepy basement or the back of a truck, as long as it meant she got to be with Chloe.

“We’d have a room just for your science experiments. Where you could blow up as many things as you wanted. Fuck getting the deposit back.” Rachel said, leaning into Chloe’s arm.

“And another room just for your videos. One with the giant Mac computers in the background and the fancy lights and a view of the city, just like all the famous Youtubers-“

“And an extra bedroom, a guest one, so we can invite over whoever we want. No more hiding our lives from our friends. Not that all of our guests would be staying in another bed, if you know what I mean. We could totally invite that hot guy from Starbucks over to…hang out with us” She said with a wink and giggle.

“Gross!” Chloe said, punching Rachel lightly in the arm.

“Fine, how about that hot girl who works at the gas station, then?”

“Better.” The girls laughed heartily, comfortably, and Rachel felt all of her fears melting away. She was ready to face the reason for her sudden “fame”.

Sensing what the other girl was thinking Chloe took a deep breath and pulled the laptop open, quickly typing in Rachel’s password.

Holding her breath, Rachel pulled her latest video back up. “1,000 views.” She read softly, prompting Chloe to gently grasp her thigh reassuringly. Rachel could feel the confidence seeping back into her, and slowly she scrolled down to the comment section, looking immediately to the most popular comments which were pinned at the top.

**Like if ur here because of steph!!!**

**24 likes**

**steph grinbitch brought me here!!! U should do a Q &A!!**

**20 likes**

“Wait – Steph as in?” Chloe started, but Rachel beat her to it, her eyes scanning the related videos and quickly falling onto the top recommended video by Steph Grinbitch – “My Friend Made a Channel!” and to the right of a smiling Steph was a screenshot of Rachel’s first video. Without thinking, she clicked the video.

“I’m here, I’m queer, and I’m back with another video!” Steph’s voice rang through her shitty mac-book speakers, cheerful but commanding as the girl always was. She was standing in her Blackwell dorm room, the one Rachel had seen a handful of times before as she attempted to understand the complex rules of D&D, watching Steph’s channel grow but feeling guilty as her and Chloe’s plan to move took up more of her time, preventing her from supporting her friend as she grew her audience. Glancing down at the red sub count she noticed it had hit an impressive 6,000 subscribers.

“Today I want to talk with you all about one of my amazing friends, Rachel!” _Amazing friend who hadn’t even warned her she was leaving, amazing friend who hadn’t offered so much as a text explaining why she and Chloe were gone, amazing friend who had stopped spending time with you because she was too busy preparing to abandon you._ Rachel thought, a pit of guilt forming in her stomach, and judging by the look on Chloe’s face, the blue-haired girl was thinking the same thing.

“Rachel and I attended school together, we bonded over the arts and she even starred in The Tempest, which those of you who have been watching me for a long time know I spent half of my sophomore year slaving over.” Rachel smiled fondly, the pit of guilt in her stomach growing larger as she remembered the hours she and Steph spent together planning every little aspect of that show.

“Just recently, Rachel made a huge decision to pick up and move to Los Angeles, and made this super cool channel!” the girl continued, pointing to the screenshot of Rachel’s video that had appeared next to her face “So far she’s posted a few videos, and I know, being the awesome, motivated badass she is she’ll be out with more soon! So go check her out! The link to her channel and all of her videos will be in the description, and let her know I sent you!” Steph finished with a wink. “So, until next time Grin-bitches, have a lovely week!” Her video closed, as it usually did, with a screen featuring her recent videos to the tune of “Back in your Head” by Tegan and Sara, and right in the middle was Rachel’s icon with a clickable link to her channel.

Slowly Rachel sat back in her seat, glancing over at her girlfriend.

“No wonder I’ve gained so many…” Rachel started

“We never even told her-“ Chloe continued

“She texted and I never replied-“

“Have we been?-“

“Horrible friends?” Rachel finally concluded, leaning back heavily into the booth. She paused. “Well, she already knows about the channel, and where we are… we didn’t exactly hide it very well. Should we?-“

“Finally text her back and tell her where the hell we’ve been?” Chloe finished. Rachel nodded, and both girls pulled out their phones, typing out quick texts.

**Steph I’m so sorry I never responded… after all of that you still shouted me out like that? You’re a Rockstar, girl. Love you, I promise to keep in touch from now on! xx**

She hit send then quickly glanced over at Chloe’s phone to see what message she had crafted.

**Steph!!! Im alive I swear!!! Srry for not responding… crazy life u know!!**

***

“Hello again Youtube! And a big welcome to the so many of you who have come from the recommendation of my wonderful friend Steph! Love ya, girl!!”

Rachel smiled, leaning back into the sleeping bag laid out in the back of the truck.

“Today I figured I’d do something a little different, since there are so many of you who are new here! Today I’m going to be doing my very first Q and Amber, where I’ll be answering some of the questions left behind by you lovely people in my comments section!”

Rachel was ready with her phone, having pulled up a number of the questions while they still had WiFi, and she smiled to Chloe before the camera before beginning to read.

“’Why do you live in your truck?’ And this question was asked by suziethegreat!” she paused, looking around her home in the back of the truck for a moment before drawing her attention back to the camera. “To be quite honest with you, we haven’t gotten our feet on the ground quite yet, but the truck is a lovely place to be living, and I truly believe we’ll be out of here and in an apartment in no time!”

“My next question is from IZV – very creative name – ‘um… where did you get that earring? I really want to buy one.’ Well, I actually made this earring myself! When I was a kid my dad used to take me out on hikes and up mountains all the time…” Rachel’s face fell slightly, hating that she still felt such fondness for the memories of herself with the man who had betrayed her. “-And one time we were hiking up a mountain out west and we saw this beautiful Western Bluebird. On the way out of the park we stopped at the gift shop. They had a bucket of feathers from this bird that they collected, cleaned, and sold. I pulled together all the money I had at the time and bought a blue feather and a brown one. That night my mom helped me make it into this earring… I never really take it off. It reminds me how free that bird was… how free I can be, if I want to.” She stared for a moment into the distance before offering a wink to the camera and answering the next question.

“Apples475 asks: ‘Are you gay? Steph makes a lot of content about being gay and I was wondering if that’s why she recommended you! If you are gay, are you dating Steph? I ship it!’ – I’m not gay, but I am actually bisexual! And no, I’m not dating Steph. She’s hella cute, but I only have eyes for my Blue Butterfly behind the camera: my girlfriend, who will remain nameless. And for Stephlovxxx who asked how I film my videos – there’s your answer! My girlfriend works her wonders and here I am!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!


End file.
